Tuesday, July 31, 2012

For almost a century and a half from its inception,
the Mormon church was shamelessly ingrained with overt racism. Even after the Civil
Rights Act of 1964 it took another fourteen years, until 1978, for colored
people to be fully allowed into the Mormon priesthood. And while outwardly they have acquiesced to
God, and federal law, it’s hard to imagine that racism doesn’t dwell to this
day in many Mormon hearts.

The foundation was laid with Joseph Smith’s
cockamamie fictional history of the righteous Nephites and the wicked, dark
skinned Lamanites, and as it evolved the doctrine of the Mormons traced the
evil black people to the first men.

The best way to illustrate this is to let their own
mouths testify against themselves.

“Cain slew his brother. Cain might have been killed, and that would
have put a termination to that line of human beings. This was not to be, and the Lord put a mark
upon him, which was the flat nose and black skin. Trace mankind down to after
the flood, and then another curse is pronounced upon the same race—that they
should be the ‘servant of servants;’ and they will be, until that curse is
removed, and the Abolitionists cannot help it, nor in the least alter that
decree.” Brigham Young, Journal ofDiscourses, 7:290.

“After the flood we are told that the curse that had
been pronounced upon Cain was continued through Ham’s wife, as he had married a
wife of that seed. And why did it pass
through the flood? Because it was
necessary that the devil should have representation upon the earth as well as
God.” John Taylor, Mormon prophet and
third president of the LDS. Journal of
Discourses 23: 204.

“And the skins of the Lamanites were dark, according
to the mark which was set upon their fathers, which was a curse upon them
because of their transgression and their rebellion.” The Book of Mormon, Alma 3:6

“The Lord segregated the people both as to blood and
place of residence. At least in the
cases of the Lamanites and the negroes we have the definite word of the Lord
Himself that He placed a dark skin upon them as a curse—as a punishment and as
a sign to all others. He forbade
intermarriage with them under threat of the extension of the curse….” Mark Peterson, LDS Apostle, from an address
given at BYU called, Race Problems, As They Affect The Church.

“Cain, Ham, and the whole negro race have been
cursed with a black skin, the mark of Cain, so they can be identified as a
caste apart, a people with whom the other descendants of Adam should not
intermarry.” Mormon Doctrine, 1966, p.
114.

Which all means that the Mormon church would not
recognize the marriage of MOSES and Zipporah.

And Miriam and Aaron spake against Moses because of
the Ethiopian woman whom he had married: for he had married an Ethiopian
woman. Numbers 12:1

Having justified themselves by their own tradition,
the Mormons went on to become very nonchalant about their racism.

“Millions of
souls have come into this world cursed with black skin and have been denied the
privilege of the Priesthood and the full blessings of the Gospel.” From The Way To Perfection, by Joseph
Fielding Smith, tenth LDS president, from 1970-1972.

“There is not a man, from the President of the
United States to the editors of their sanctorums, clear down to low bred letter
writers in this Territory, but would rob the coppers from a dead nigger’s eyes,
if they had a good opportunity.” George
Smith, LDS Apostle, from the Journal Of Discourses, 5:110

“But let them apostasize, and they will become
gray-haired, wrinkled and black, just like the Devil.” Brigham Young, Journal Of Discourses, vol. 5,
page 32.

“I would not want you to believe that we bear any
animosity toward the negro. Darkies are
wonderful people, and they have their place in our church.” Look Magazine, October 22, 1963, page 79.

Jesus was surely a darkie. Unless the angels protected him with sun block
everywhere he went, including the forty days in the wilderness when he was
tempted by Satan. Can you really call
Jesus cursed then hope for his salvation?

Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men. Matthew 12:31

According to the Scriptures we all have the same
father—

And call no man your father upon the earth: for one
is your Father, which is in heaven.
Matthew 23:9

--and therefore we are all brothers and sisters.

If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he
is a liar: for he who loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love
God whom he hath not seen? 1 John 4:20

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

In the
Mormon church the Three Witnesses are the three men, Oliver Cowdery, Martin
Harris and David Whitmer, who signed a statement attesting that they had seen
firsthand the golden plates of The Book of Mormon.False witnesses are plentiful throughout
history and in the Bible.

Now the
chief priests, and elders, and all the council, sought false witness against
Jesus, to put him to death;
But found none: yea, though many false witnesses came, yet found they none. At
the last came two false witnesses,
And said, This fellow said, I am able to destroy the temple of God, and to
build it in three days. Matthew 26:59-61

In 1835
Joseph Smith established the Quorum (i.e. Council) of the Twelve Apostles, by asking the Three Witnesses to name the first twelve, who were to be
the ruling authority of the church. Because every false Christ needs to
surround himself with twelve apostles to bolster the authority by which he
deceives his followers.

By 1838,
the Mormon population of Kirtland had risen to 2000. Joseph Smith founded a bank and launched other
business enterprises. It was actually a
brilliant business model: bring fresh strangers into town and receive their
money, whether through tithes or in the stores and the bank. It’s like sitting and fishing all day while
others keep stocking the lake. Smith
also claimed to have started the bank in response to a command from God.

Warren
Parrish, who had been an officer in Smith’s bank and member of his
congregation, and who had renounced Mormonism, was quoted in The Painesville
Republican on February 22, 1838 as saying:
“I have listened to him (Smith) with feelings of no ordinary kind, when
he declared that the audible voice of God instructed him to establish a banking
anti-banking institution, which like Aaron’s rod shall swallow up all other
banks—the bank of Monroe excepted—and grow and flourish and spread from the
rivers to the ends of the earth, and survive when all others should be laid in
ruins.”

It is a natural thing that the prophet chosen to restore the church which had been
fallen for eighteen hundred years since the death of the last apostle should
open a bank. Judas Iscariot was the
apostle who handled Jesus Christ’s finances.

For some
of them thought, because Judas had the bag, that Jesus had said unto him, Buy
those things that we have need of against the feast; or, that he should give
something to the poor. John 13:29

Like Judas, Joseph Smith
was beholden to his love of money, the root of all evil; and like Judas, Joseph
Smith was an unclean man who betrayed Jesus Christ.

For he knew who should
betray him; therefore said he, Ye are not all clean. John 13:11

And both Judas and Joseph
Smith betrayed the Lord for money: Judas for the infamous thirty pieces of
silver; and Smith by propagating false truths about Jesus Christ in the name
of God, for ready cash in tithes and bank deposits.

The bank collapsed, and lots of people lost lots money. There were
also numerous rumors of sexual improprieties involving Smith, including affairs
with other men’s wives. These rumors
were later effectively validated in 1842, when Smith announced his revelation
of God’s commandment to engage in ‘celestial marriage,’ a euphemism for
polygamy, which he proclaimed that certain special individuals were permitted
to practice, himself being one. Because
David and Solomon and other biblical heroes had multiple wives it is difficult
to wield scripture against Smith in this regard; notwithstanding the Bible does
say that a man leaves his parents and cleaves to his wife, not wives, wherefore
it is fair to conclude that Smith both committed and persuaded women to commit
the sin of adultery.

It is no surprise that practicing a false religion
which abused Jesus Christ, and defrauding people of their money, and having carnal relations with other men’s wives, had aroused enough anger in the community that Smith and his
followers were forcibly driven from Kirtland by the middle of 1838. They continued westward, and tried to settle
in Smith’s prophesied ‘promised land’ of Independence, Missouri, but they were
met with such violent opposition there, that on October 27, 1838, Missouri
Governor Lilburn Boggs took the extraordinary measure of issuing ‘Executive
Order 44,’ or, the Mormon Extermination Order, which read, in part:
‘Mormons had committed open and avowed defiance of the law…had made war upon
the people of this state…and the Mormons must be treated as enemies, and must
be exterminated or driven from the State if necessary for the public
peace—their outrages are beyond description.’

The Mormons continued their westward migration, and settled in Nauvoo, Illinois, in 1839, where Joseph Smith bought 18,000 acres of land. That's a huge tract of land for a man to purchase who worked no trade and had just had his attempt at starting a bank collapse. Since the money the bank took in and lost went somewhere, Smith seems more like a thief than a prophet.In Nauvoo, the Mormons who had followed Joseph Smith were joined by European converts, and they set out to build a city and to create a society in preparation for Christ's return. The population grew quickly, and by 1844 had swelled to twelve thousand, which rivaled Chicago. In Nauvoo, Joseph Smith was described as obsessed with increasing his military and political power. He scripted the Nauvoo city charter to grant himself greater authority. He was elected mayor and had himself appoint Chief Justice of the city court. He was named Lieutenant General of the Nauvoo Legion, an armed militia. He created a church council of fifty which sought to establish a 'theodeomocracy,' and to that end the council elected Joseph Smith prophet, priest and king of the coming millennial monarchy (doubtless a reference to Christ's one thousand year reign after the devil is bound up in Revelation 20). In 1844 Joseph Smith launched a third party candidacy for President of the United States.

The earthly titles Smith held and the powers he sought were in disregard of Jesus Christ, who taught: Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ.But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. Matthew 23:10-11

In Nauvoo, Joseph had two major
‘revelations.’The first was the
previously mentioned one regarding ‘celestial marriage.’The second was that of the baptism of the
dead, in which he explained to his congregation that God gave Mormons the
authority to baptize deceased family members into the church, so that they
would be reunited in the bliss hereafter.

This is yet another doctrine which is in direct
contradiction to that of Jesus Christ, who said:Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead.Matthew 8:22

There are two prevalent interpretations of this
scripture, either of which can be applied to the bizarre Mormon practice of
baptism for the dead.The first is to
let the ‘spiritually’ dead human beings bury the ‘physically’ dead.For their practice of the rite of baptism for
the dead, and for the rest of their doctrine, Mormons are indeed ‘spiritually’
dead.The second interpretation is
simply to take the scripture literally (the interpretation which this author
has always believed to be the meaning of the verse).In this case the Mormons can be considered to
tamper with that which Christ forbid.A fee was charged for the performing of this rite,
which revenue generating practice continues in the Mormon church unto this
day.There was a recent scandal in the
Mormon church where it came to light that they were using their ritual baptism
for the dead to convert dead Jews to Mormonism.This bizarre twist on their bizarre practice came to light when a
request was made to baptize Jewish Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel, who is still
living.

It also written in the Scriptures:And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto
them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter:
should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead? To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them. Isaiah 8:19-20

Because the Mormons contravene the law of Moses and controvert the gospel of Christ, there is no light in them.The Bible says so.

When Christ went to the cross it was as a lamb, in
complete submission to his enemies, to whom he had done no wrong.God was glorified.When Joseph Smith met his death it was as a
deluded thug and power mad bully.A
false prophet was slain.

On June 7, 1844, a man named William Law published
the first and last edition of a newspaper called the Nauvoo Expositor.Law was a former Mormon, and in his paper he
accused Joseph Smith of polygamy and of coercing young women into sexual relationships;
and of wielding dictatorial political powers.The Nauvoo city council quickly declared the newspaper a public
nuisance, and on June 10th Smith ordered the city marshal to destroy
the paper and its printing press.Residents of surrounding counties were horrified by this act, so contrary
to the constitution held so sacred, and there were calls for Smith to be put to
death.Warrants were issued for his
arrest on the charge of treason.On June
18th Smith called 5,000 men of the Nauvoo Legion to arms and declared
martial law.

The governor of Illinois became involved, promising
Smith protection in exchange for surrender, and on June 25th Smith
and his brother Hyrum turned themselves in to authorities, and were
incarcerated in a jail in Carthage, Illinois.On June 27th a vigilante mob of 200 men attacked the
jail.As they approached one of the
nervous jailers informed Smith of what was happening.Deluded to the end, he told the jailer that
they were rescuers come to liberate he and Hyrum.A gun fight ensued—Smith was armed with a pepperbox
pistol that someone had given him earlier in the day—and Smith and his brother
were shot dead.God was not glorified; a
devil was exterminated.

I have seen also in the prophets of Jerusalem an
horrible thing: they commit adultery, and walk in lies: they strengthen also
the hands of evildoers, that none doth return from his wickedness; they are all
of them unto me as Sodom and the inhabitants thereof as Gomorrah.Jeremiah 23:14

Monday, July 16, 2012

But the
prophet, who shall presume to speak a word in my name, which I have not
commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, even
that prophet shall die.

And if thou say in thine heart, How shall we know the word which the LORD hath
not spoken?
When a prophet speaketh in the name of the LORD, if the thing follow not, that
is the thing which the LORD hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it
presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him. Deuteronomy 18:20-22

Since
Joseph Smith feared not to make bold in regarding himself a prophet, it
naturally followed that he issued prophesies to bolster his masquerade.These are recorded in The Doctrines and Covenants, one of the sacred Mormon texts, which was largely dictation
of his ‘revelations’ by Joseph Smith.

Some of
the prophesies did come to pass, and others did not; and some were ambiguously
worded. This has led to their being used by
both his supporters and detractors: his supporters cite the prophecies that came
to pass, or yet may still, as evidence verifying that Smith was divinely
inspired, while his detractors cite the failed prophesies in their
denunciations.

But
since every last one of Christ’s prophesies have fulfilled with uncanny
accuracy, and since Smith claimed to be the chosen prophet to establish the one
true church of Christ on earth, which had been astray for eighteen centuries,
since the death of the last of the apostles, we ought to expect the same from
Smith; for if that were the truth then so would have been every word out of his
mouth, and it is fair to hold him to a standard of perfection.

For
anyone interested in exploring it, there is a Wikipedia page which details many
of Smith’s prophesies and their outcomes.
I am just going to present three here which corroborate my understanding
that Smith was a false prophet.

1) “Yea, the word of the Lord concerning his
church, established in the last days for the restoration of his people, as he
has spoken by the mouth of his prophets, and for the gathering of his saints to
stand upon Mount Zion, which shall be the city of New Jerusalem. Which city shall be built, beginning at the
temple lot, which is appointed by the finger of the Lord, in the western
boundaries of the State of Missouri, and dedicated by the hand of Joseph Smith,
and others with whom the Lord was well pleased.” From a revelation through Joseph Smith,
received in Kirtland, Ohio, September 22nd and 23rd,
1832, as it appears in Doctrines and Covenants 84:2-3.

That never
came to pass, and the Mormons were driven out of Missouri in the late 1830’s.

2) “Verily,
thus saith the Lord concerning the wars that will shortly come to pass,
beginning at the rebellion of South Carolina, which will eventually terminate
in the death and misery of many souls; And the time will come that the war will
be poured out upon all nations, beginning at this place. For behold, the Southern States shall be
divided against the Northern States, and the Southern States will call on other
nations, even the nation of Great Britain, as it is called, and they shall also
call upon other nations, in order to defend themselves against other nations;
and then war shall be poured out upon all nations.” From a revelation received by Joseph Smith on
December 25th, 1832, as it appears in Doctrines and Covenants 87:1-3.

This is another clearly false prophesy. Mormons point to the Civil War as the
fulfillment of this prophesy, but the Civil War started in Virginia, and did
not escalate to involve other nations and eventually all nations.

3) “I was
once praying very earnestly to know the time of the coming of the Son of Man,
when I heard a voice repeat the following: Joseph, my son, if thou livest until
thou art eighty five years old, thou shalt see the face of the Son of Man;
therefore let this suffice, and trouble me no more on this matter.” April 2, 1843, as it appears in Doctrines and Covenants 130:14-15

Joseph
Smith died at age 39 in a gunfight with authorities while incarcerated in
Illinois in 1844. The Mormons deny this
being a failed prophecy as Smith did not live to be 85, but I say that his
death was like the fulfillment of the following biblical prophesy, in that the LORD made
the same example of Smith as He did of Hananiah.

Then
said the prophet Jeremiah unto Hananiah the prophet, Hear now, Hananiah; The
LORD hath not sent thee; but thou makest this people to trust in a lie. Therefore thus saith the LORD; Behold, I will
cast thee from off the face of the earth: this year thou shalt die, because thou
hast taught rebellion against the LORD.
Jeremiah 28: 15-16.

Saturday, July 14, 2012

About
the Bible, Joseph Smith wrote: “We believe the Bible to be the word of God as
far as it is translated correctly.”

About
itself, it is written in the Bible: Ye shall not add unto the word which I
command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the
commandments of the LORD your God which I command you. Deuteronomy 4:2

The
Mormons staunchly professed the authority of the Bible, and were quick to quote
its verses, particularly those that supported their doctrine. But The Book of Mormon protected them from
the passages that ran contrary to their beliefs by proclaiming: many “plain and
precious things” had been lost or expurgated from the Scriptures. In this manner anything in the Bible that
contradicted Mormon doctrine was explained away as mistranslation, which
arrogantly questions God’s ability to keep the word perfect in any language over any length of time.

When a
commandment or sentiment of particular importance appears in the Bible, it is frequently
repeated for emphasis. So it is when
warning men of the dangers of tampering with the word of the LORD.

Every
word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him.
Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a
liar. Proverbs 30:5-6

Despite
the stern warnings contained in its pages, and despite the fact that he knew
neither Hebrew nor Greek (the languages in which the Old and New Testament were
written) from 1830-1833 Joseph Smith undertook to ‘translate’ the Bible, which,
according to his claim, had been circulating in mistranslation for eighteen
centuries. Working from the King James version, and guided by revelation, Smith
produced the Joseph Smith Inspired Translation of the Bible. Despite all its preposterous and glaring shortcomings, the Mormons still link to it on their website here.

To get a
little sampling of Joseph Smith’s butchery of the Scriptures I decided to do a side
by side comparison of some verses from the Gospel According to Saint John. Here are several for you to decide if Smith’s
handiwork qualifies as adding to or removing from the word of God.

King
James version, John 1:1: In the beginning
was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

Joseph
Smith’s Inspired Translation, John 1:1: In the beginning was the gospel
preached through the Son. And the gospel
was the word, and the word was with the Son, and the Son was with God, and the
Son was of God.

King
James version, John 1:16-17: 16And of his fullness have all we received, and
grace for grace.
17For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.

The
Joseph Smith Inspired Translation of those two verses is so clumsy and verbose that it
becomes three verses. John 1:16-18: 16For
in the beginning was the Word, even the Son, who is made flesh, and sent unto
us by the will of the Father. And as many as believe on his name shall receive
of his fullness. And of his fullness have
all we received, even immortality and eternal life, through his grace.
17For the law was given through Moses, but life and truth came through Jesus
Christ.
18For the law was after a carnal commandment, to the administration of death;
but the gospel was after the power of an endless life, through Jesus Christ,
the Only Begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father.

And here
is Smith's reworking of the very verse that refutes and disproves his contention
that God Almighty himself appeared to Joseph Smith on several occasions. Notice how it is conveniently altered to be
availed in support of Smith’s claim.

King
James version, John 1:18: No man hath seen God at any time, the only begotten
Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.

Joseph
Smith Inspired Translation, John 1:19: And no man hath seen God at any time,
except he hath borne record of the Son; for except it is through him no man can
be saved.

Now let
us turn to the very last words of the Bible, where the warning about tampering
with the Word is yet again made crystal clear and gravely dire.

For I
testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If
any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that
are written in this book:
And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God
shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and
from the things which are written in this book.
He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus.
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
Revelation 22:18-21

The Mormons are adamant that the Scriptures are the word of God. I agree, and it is plainly written therein that the false prophet Joseph Smith went on to suffer from plagues and deprivation and all the punishments for blasphemy.

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Read What The Bible Says About Mormons revised and in its entirety here. As Smith’s church slowly grew, he sent out
missionaries (a euphemism for reconnaissance scouts) to Ohio, then in 1831
led seventy five followers to Kirtland, Ohio, where they joined a preacher
named Sidney Rigdon and his congregation of one hundred.

Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall
fall into the ditch. Matthew 15:14

There Smith utilized the basic and effective
psychological ploy of telling his congregants what they wanted to hear. To this end he started referring to them as ‘latter
day saints.’ Again, Smith usurped God’s
authority when he sanctified others.

But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged of
you, or of man’s judgment: yea, I judge not mine own self.
For I know nothing by myself; yet am I not hereby justified: but he that judgeth
me is the Lord.
Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will
bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the
counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God. 1 Corinthians 4:3-5

Once settled in Kirtland, Smith sought to grow his
church by sending missionaries to fan throughout America seeking converts.

But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye
compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him
twofold more the child of hell than yourselves. Matthew 23:15

The church grew gradually in Kirtland, and in December
of 1832 Smith convened nine priests in prayer, and they claimed to have
received a revelation that spanned two days in which they were told the only
way into the presence of God was through the temple. Very true...

What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost
which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? 1
Corinthians 6:19

...yet Smith's understanding of that seems wildly misinterpreted. Instead he and his followers constructed not a
Christian church in Kirtland, but a temple inspired by the Old Testament, 'a
house of God and a school for the Prophets, dedicated unto the Lord from the
foundation thereof, according to the order of the priesthood.' Comprised of a lower and upper court spanning
three stories, the edifice was a combined place of worship, school and Mormon office, as well as a place of secret rituals of anointing and blessing that connected the latter day saints to God. Following consecration of the temple, Mormons
claimed to have experienced three months of miracles within its walls, which
they likened to Pentecost. They
heard rushing of wind, and angelic choirs; they witnessed angels fly in through
the windows, and God standing beside Joseph Smith.

In the Bible, New Jerusalem appears in
Revelation.

And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God
out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven
saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them,
and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their
God. Revelation 21:1

Joseph claimed to receive all knowledge through
revelation, and proclaimed to his followers that new Jerusalem, or the city of
Zion, was to be located in Independence, Missouri, where one of his followers had purchased a tract of land. In a vision
he saw it as the gathering place of saints in the last days, and that he was to
build a temple there.

He also began teaching his followers that the garden
of Eden was also on the site in Independence, which begs the question: where are the
rivers? and Assyria and Ethiopia?

And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence
it was parted, and became into four heads.
The name of the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of
Havilah, where there is gold;
And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and onyx stone.
And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the
whole land of Ethiopia.
And the name of the third river is Hiddekel: that is it which goeth toward the
east of Assyria. And the fourth river is
Euphrates. Genesis
2:10-14

Saturday, July 7, 2012

Read What The Bible Says About Mormons revised and in its entirety here. After completing the translation of the golden
plates, Smith returned them to the angel Moroni, which made it conveniently impossible
for him to ever validate his claim by producing them.
Instead for proof he offered several witnesses who swore to having seen
the plates. One of these was a man named
Oliver Cowdery, one of Smith’s earliest followers. One day in May of 1829, Smith and Cowdery
went into the woods to pray to God specifically regarding ‘baptism for the
remission of sins.’ Their prayer was
answered by the appearance of a being who identified himself as John the
Baptist. John placed his hands on their
heads, and conferred unto them the ‘priesthood of Aaron, which holds the keys
of the ministering angels, and of the Gospel of repentance, and of the baptism
by immersion for the remission of sins.’

If they were lying—and the truth states that they were—then
how great the lie! And to make God, Jesus and John the Baptist part of it…how
much greater the condemnation!

Smith and Cowdery immediately baptized each other, then
commenced to baptizing proselytes.

Publication of The Book of Mormon was financed by Martin Harris,
and the book was published in 1830. On
April 6, 1830, Smith’s Church of Christ formally established itself in Fayette,
New York. Joseph Smith boldly proclaimed
that ‘his was the one true church since the death of Christ’s apostles.’ The arrogance is staggering, to state that
eighteen centuries of civilization had lived without the true church of Christ; that all of mankind was lost until Joseph Smith
came to bring them the light.

Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is
Christ, or there; believe it not.
For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great
signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very
elect. Matthew 24:23-24

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

Read What The Bible Says About Mormons revised and in its entirety here. Smith’s twenty first year brought several major life
events. He had returned to the hill Cumorah
once every year, and on the fifth visit, when he was twenty one, he was able to
take the plates away with him.

Also that same year, Smith was brought to
court. Treasure divining and money
digging were illegal activities, and Smith had hired himself out to a man named
Josiah Stoal, also of New York, to find the location of a silver mine in
Susquehanna, Pennsylvania. The charge was brought by Stoal’s relatives,
who wanted to prevent their kinsman from wasting any more money on Smith. The charge was classified a misdemeanor, and
at least twelve witnesses were issued subpoenas. There are varying accounts of
the outcome. In some, Smith was acquitted
by Josiah Stoal’s testimony; in others, he either escaped or was convicted and
left town.

And also that same twenty first year, he married
Emma Hale, who he had met while searching for the silver mine in Susquehanna. Following the trial Joseph and Emma left New
York for Pennsylvania, to translate the golden plates. Their trip was financed by a prosperous local
farmer named Martin Harris, who had heard of the plates and taken great
interest. Smith had worked for Harris in
the past; Harris gave the couple fifty dollars for their trip then followed
them shortly thereafter.

The translation of the plates was a process of
dictation from Smith to his wife or Harris.
Smith positioned himself behind a curtain, then upturned his hat, placed
the seer stones therein, then thrust his face into the darkness of the hat,
making a point to exclude all light,
before 'reading' The Book of Mormon aloud.

Then Jesus said unto them,Yet a little while is the
light with you. Walk while ye have the
light, lest darkness come upon you: for he that walketh in darkness knoweth not
whither he goeth. John 12:35

In a series of revelations over the course of the
months of the translation, Joseph received the account of the ancient peoples
of the Americas. Their history begins
with that of the Hebrews. Around 600 BC,
at the time Israel was being carried into its captivity in Babylon, a prophet
Lehi and his family were divinely inspired to leave Jerusalem just before the
conquest and journey to the Indian Ocean.
There they built boats and sailed to the west coast of the Americas and resettled. They spent the ensuing centuries—when not engaged in war
with one another--building elaborate cities and temples. Conflict eventually divided them into two
tribes, the Nephites and the Lamanites.

The Nephites were descended from Nephi, a son of Lehi. They were at first a righteous people. The
Lamanites descended from Laman and Lemuel, Nephi’s rebellious brothers. They are described as cursed by God with a
skin of blackness for their wickedness and corruption. Immediately after the crucifixion and
resurrection, Jesus Christ appeared to both tribes to announce that he was come
to organize his church. For two
centuries the two tribes co-existed in peace; then strife arose, and they
warred until the fifth century, when the Lamanites destroyed the backsliding Nephites—Moroni's tribe.

The Book of Mormon asserts that the Lamanites were
the ancestors of the Native American peoples.
Notwithstanding that archaeologists have found no shred of evidence that
the Nephites and Lamanites ever existed, and that scientists have genetically
determined that Native Americans are primarily descended from northeast Asians, and
Polynesian people descended from southeast Asians. But the Book of Mormon asserts many things that
simply are not true; it is a work of FICTION.

And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in
them that perish; because they
receive not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should
believe a lie:
That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in
unrighteousness. 2 Thessalonians 2:10-12